Team:UIUC-Illinois/Safety
From 2012.igem.org
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- | Our new biobrick parts do not raise any safety issues. The protein that we work with binds site-specifically and cleaves single stranded RNA, which means that its safety is approximately equivalent to that of restriction enzymes. The PUF protein itself is harmless in the environment. In addition, the PUF gene is not cloned into mammalian expression vectors, so it cannot be expressed even if it were to enter mammalian cells. Our gene does not produce any toxins, and the organisms that we used to test our gene are not infectious. In the unlikely case that the PUF gene were to be expressed in mammalian cells, it could have potential translational modification effects. | + | Our new biobrick parts do not raise any safety issues. The protein that we work with binds site-specifically and cleaves single stranded RNA, which means that its safety is approximately equivalent to that of restriction enzymes. The PUF protein itself is harmless in the environment. |
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+ | In addition, the PUF gene is not cloned into mammalian expression vectors, so it cannot be expressed even if it were to enter mammalian cells. Our gene does not produce any toxins, and the organisms that we used to test our gene are not infectious. In the unlikely case that the PUF gene were to be expressed in mammalian cells, it could have potential translational modification effects. | ||
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+ | <h2>Safety Question 3</h2> | ||
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+ | Our research work was conducted in the Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB) on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. This institution and its researchers must comply with the guidelines set forth by the Office of Safety and Compliance (OSC). Thus, we were required to complete three web training modules online before beginning laboratory work. Two web training modules were produced by the Division of Research Safety (DRS) on campus, and one was produced by the IGB itself. | ||
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+ | The two modules administered through the DRS dealt with general laboratory safety and biosafety. The biosafety training module was sufficient to prepare us for work in our level two biosafety laboratory in the IGB. All team members passed these training modules, and records of training completion were retained by IGB staff. In accordance with its standards, the OSC also trained us to use any potentially hazardous equipment. We worked closely with IGB faculty and staff advisers who monitored our progress with understanding of safety requirements. Overall, our team members made efforts to comply with the safety regulations of our institution to make sure our work did not present any safety hazards to ourselves or those around us. In future operatons, we plan to appoint a specialized advisor in terms of laboratory and project safety. | ||
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Revision as of 01:51, 8 September 2012